Leaders from Oakland University and Wayne State University recently gathered at Meadow Brook Hall to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Higher Education Resource Services (HERS), an organization that supports woman-identified leaders with the goal of driving inclusive and equitable change in higher education.
The celebration featured remarks from HERS President Dr. Gloria Thomas, along with leaders from OU and Wayne State who participated in the HERS Leadership Institute, the organization’s signature leadership development program, founded to fill higher education leadership pipelines across the United States with dynamic women. Dr. Elaine Carey, OU’s College of Arts and Sciences Dean and a HERS Leadership Institute alum, emceed the event.
In her keynote speech, Dr. Thomas chronicled the development of HERS – from its humble beginnings in the wake of Title IX, the landmark legislation that outlawed sex discrimination in any school or education program that receives federal funding – to its emergence as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. She encouraged attendees to “have an equity lens” and to be “bold and authentic about where we stand, the values we hold and what we’re striving for.”
Dr. Thomas, whose distinguished career includes more than 20 years contributing to women’s leadership development, also reflected on her upbringing as the youngest in a family with eight children.
“No one in my family had even thought about college, let alone gone, and I had an opportunity to go to an Upward Bound program close to where I lived and it was that program that made the difference,” she said, adding that funding for such programs has declined in recent years.
In addition, alumnae of the HERS Leadership Institute described how their experiences in the program benefitted them personally and professionally.
Original source can be found here.
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